Sing Me Down
by Anti-Logic
Summary: Katara, the school choir's star singer, receives a strange assignment from her music teacher that turns her little world upside down. Throw in punches, a project, and a protest and you've got bedlam. "What does 'sing me down' mean to you?" AxK ZxK
1. May It Be

A/N: One announcement: Although at the time I'm publishing this my penname is Twilight Dragoness, it will soon become Anti-Logic. Just in case anyone recognizes the old name later.

So I finally did it. I began writing the dreaded high school AU I've been threatening. Let's hope it doesn't turned out clichéd, eh? Haven't read many of these, I have to admit. I'll try to define the musical terms at the end of the chapter; ask me about it if you don't understand something. Just don't get upset if this doesn't conclude with the pairing you want. xP I'm trying an experiment. If all goes as planned, this story will be longer than my other ones, so I'm goint to force myself to not obsess over the finished product for half a week looking for ways I could better phrase things before finally posting it. I'm just going to...go. Wooo!

Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar, nor most of the songs and brand names littered throughout this thing.

* * *

_May it be the shadow's call_

_Will fly away._

_May it be you journey on_

_To light the day._

The chords swelled with a depth that went far beyond her high school choir room. She felt the clean sound travel through her throat, vibrating gently, like magic waiting to be released. It spun softly in her mouth, gaining its bell-like quality. Her eyes closed almost naturally as she reveled in the notes' liberation, the rich complexity of the chords, the climactic resolution at the end.

_A promise lives within you now._

As the accompaniment faded into nothing, she slowly reopened her eyes, fully prepared to just revel in the moment. Or she would have been, if it weren't for the chaos that surrounded her as soon as the song ended.

"Sokka! Striking a pose at the conclusion is not necessary."

"Aw c'mon, Ms. Wu…"

"So guess what I got at the mall on Tuesday? Guess!"

"I'm just _dying _with anticipation, Ty Lee. Tell me."

"Well, it was the cutest, pinkest, fluffiest – Ouch! Azula, stop pulling my hair!"

"It was in my face. Besides, Mai looked like she was dying."

"No no, it's double-b-triangle-back-square-triple-a!"

"Teo, I _distinctly _remember you saying double-a-triangle-back-square-double-a."

"Well uh…you're a loser."

"Says the guy who can't tell the difference between an Xbox and a Wii."

"Hey, take that back you – whoa, sorry Katara."

Katara ignored the fact that her toe had narrowly escaped death-by-wheelchair in Teo's attempt to reach Haru for a punch on the shoulder, just smiling and turning to talk to Jin. She hadn't expected perfection when she joined the choir; they were only high schoolers. She had to admit that they sounded good, though – at least when she closed her eyes.

The bell gave a sharp retort and the students scrambled for their book bags, her brother making the fastest break for the door. Why he had consented to join the class with her she'd never know – probably something about cute girls, knowing him. She felt a hand on her shoulder as Ms. Wu pulled her from the current of students, leading her to the piano.

"Katara dear, here's some simple sheet music. Don't you need to practice sight-reading for that…oh, what was it…" she made a grand gesturing motion with one hand, the other massaging her temple.

"The solo and ensemble competition at Kyoshi High?"

"Of course. All of these competitions that we're joining get so cluttered in my mind…it obstructs my view of the beyond."

"…Right. Do you just want me to look over these and see if I can sing them on sight or what?"

"Yes. Just give yourself the first note on the piano and go. Have you picked the song for the solo portion?"

"Um…not yet. I've still got awhile, though."

"Make sure you find one. Have a good day, then, and be sure to practice! I'm counting on you to lead your section in the group number."

"Thanks."

She knew that the competition was still months away and so did her teacher, but they had something in common in that they wanted this important event to be perfect. She knew that most of her classmates wouldn't take it that seriously after all; she loved most of them, but it was still just another grade in their minds. To her, music just clicked. It was something to live, to breathe, something to _be. _She wholeheartedly approved of the number they had just been practicing – an Enya piece from _Lord of the Rings_. It wasn't like she was that into fantasy, but the music itself was very moving. She knew that if anyone could peer into her mind and see just how obsessive she was over the smallest things – the buildup of a chord, the steady _crescendo _of a note – they would probably think that she was insane. She did a good job of keeping it to herself, but sometimes it overflowed a bit, to the extreme annoyance of her rather tomboyish best friend.

As she made her way to the door, she noticed absently that she wasn't the only student still left in the room. One girl sat in the back row of the soprano section, scribbling frantically in a little white notebook. She hadn't even made an attempt to collect her things yet. Katara knew her by sight if not by name. She was one of the quiet, easily forgettable types, except for that she somehow seemed…off. Her long brown hair was pulled back and loosely braided, no bangs framing her face. It gave her a simple, almost pure look, she now noticed. Something about her appearance gave her further pause – a soft pink top, sandals, and a long white skirt that looked as if it would billow as she walked. That was a bit unusual; why hadn't she noticed how…different she seemed? Not really "off," not precisely, but…

She realized that she was probably staring. Not that skirt girl seemed like she was going to look up any time soon – didn't she have a class to get to? Come to think of it, so did Katara. Dismissing it as a random tangent of her mind, she turned and left the room.

* * *

She crossed the threshold of her biology classroom just before the bell rang, earning her a glare from the teacher. Not that he ever did anything but glare. She slid onto her stool at the lab table, pulling her notebook out of her bag.

"Get that boring stuff out of your system?" The voice came from the shorter girl sitting next to her.

"I don't do boring stuff, Toph," she smiled.

"Hey, that song you were blabbering about seemed pretty dull to me. Oooh, elves. I think I'm gonna faint."

"It's not the elves that are the important thing, it's the-"

"What about elves?" asked a new voice as its owner sat down on Katara's other side.

"Aang, tell Toph that 'May It Be' isn't a boring song. You've heard me sing it, right?"

"Don't listen to her, Twinkletoes. It's a snorefest and you know it."

"Uh…"

The debate was cut off by the teacher, who cleared his throat quite violently above Aang's head. He winced.

"Sorry I was late, Mr. Zhao. I was hanging up posters for the Save Ghost River rally at-"

"Can it."

As the grumpy man walked away, Toph made a face in his general direction and Katara laughed at Aang's obviously strenuous efforts not to do the same.

"You stay so nice to everyone, Aang. How do you manage?"

"Huh?" he looked pleased with the complement. "Why're you asking me? You're just as nice."

"Mm…not when I get mad. Like…I wouldn't be able to be nice to _him."_ She nodded towards the back of the classroom. Toph sighed.

"Would you quit doing that?" She waved her hand in front of her sightless eyes for added emphasis.

"Uh…sorry. I meant" – she leaned in for a conspiratorial whisper – "Zuko."

Toph grinned wickedly, but Aang frowned.

"Katara, he's probably not all that bad."

"What are you talking about? Look at him, sitting back there like he thinks he's too cool for all of this. He probably got that scar on his face in some stupid fight; he keeps trying to pick one with you."

Toph snorted. "I doubt he wants to pick a fight with 'im for the hell of it; there's no pride in it."

"Hey…"

"Well, it's true. You have to admit that it's probably just because your family doesn't get along with his."

"Not my fault his dad wants to develop the river…" Aang mumbled a bit resentfully. "But I don't think that's his fault. Maybe…I dunno, maybe he just needs a release. I read in this psychology article-"

"Yeah, whatever. He's just mad at your gramps."

Gyatso wasn't technically Aang's grandpa; he had been adopted by the old man when he was young. But it was easy enough for Katara to envision them being related – both shared a passion for peace, the environment, and martial arts. They were like…deadly hippies. Zuko, on the other hand, lacked all of these qualities from what she saw of him, except for one. He and Aang were practically rivals in the martial arts arena. That had been how the two had first officially met – in a match.

"He's just trying to get under your skin," Toph assured Aang. "He won't do anything until the competition. Just thrash 'im there. Again."

Katara had to smirk at that. He was just sitting there, leaned against his lab table with his arms crossed across his chest, hair dangling into his eyes like he thought he was some kind of dramatic antihero. He glanced up just then, and sharp golden eyes accidentally met her own. His upper lip curled and they both looked away quickly. She was positive that her dislike was so strong that even Toph could feel it on her body without seeing her face.

"Yeah," she couldn't help but add, "again."

* * *

Three more grueling classes later and Katara was almost home free. Her last class was easy enough, and probably her favorite – Music. That had been the course title on the schedule, and that had been what it had been referred to for the entire year. She could see why; anything more specific wouldn't do it justice. The funny old teacher taught them everything from the names and styles of classical composers to the basics of writing their own songs. His classroom was brightly decorated and hung with artwork, most of it made by his students to remember them by. The desks were never in rows, just one giant circle.

She walked into the room and deposited her things at her desk, giving the man a greeting. He was the type of teacher who thought outside the box and let his students call him by only his first name, but somehow not many did. There was an element of underlying elegance to his antics that led to most of them attaching a "Mr."

"Hello, Mr. Iroh," called Meng as she scurried into the room, and he gave a nod and a smile in return. He was just a generally loveable, relaxed sort of person, one that students actually felt that they could talk to. No matter how much teachers pushed the idea that a student could talk to them about anything, it took a special one to actually make it true.

The casual ruckus of the classroom died down as the bell rang and Mr. Iroh stepped into the circle of desks.

"We're going to start on a new project today," he began, playfully shooing aside the over exaggerated groans. "It requires no writing, no memorizing. Not even much learning. I simply want you to discover the meaning of a single phrase for me. But what I demand could be exhausting – I want you to think on this phrase obsessively, as you eat, as you read, as you work, as you dream. Think until you discover for yourself what the meaning is."

He grabbed a hat full of slips of paper from the ground, offering one to each student while peering into each of their faces. As Katara reached in, she got the impression that his eyes lingered slightly longer on her's than the others'. Strangely familiar, they were gentle but crafty and wise, ready to issue a challenge that she knew went somehow far beyond schoolwork. She was being dramatic again, wasn't she? She looked down at the hastily torn paper she held in her hands, unfolding it almost reverently. The words seemed to lock in her mind, burning themselves into her consciousness.

_Sing me down._

* * *

Terms

_Solo and Ensemble - _Choirs go to these to get critiqued by experts; the way of doing things differs a bit depending on which one you're at but they've got basically the same structure.

_Crescendo - _Steady increase in volume.

_Soprano - _A female singer on the higher part of an arrangement, usually the melody.

Drop a review on your way out? It would really make my day, and help me decide if this experiment is worthwhile.


	2. The Tryouts

A/N: Twilight Rose2, this chapter's for you. Kind of. xD Meaning that it's Tokka-ish. Sorta. Keep in mind that although I have a grand layout for most of this story, a lot of stuff is still undecided. Like minor pairings.

Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar. And I'm sorry that yet another hippie joke managed to slip in there, really I am. They're fascinating people, right? The sixties are my favorite period of history, besides the Revolutionary War. -dork-

* * *

"But what does it _mean? _It would be so easy to misinterpret."

"Just make something up."

"No, he'd be able to tell. I need to figure out what he wants from me."

"But that's the thing, isn't it? From what you tell me about Mr. Iroh, he probably just wants whatever you can think up. It's called creativity, I think."

Katara and Toph were on their way home from school, the rather blustery day blowing their hair every which way. The sound of catcalls and casual conversation was gradually fading into the background as they moved further away from the large granite "Roku High School, 1966" tributary sign. Underneath, some young literary genius had carved "Damn hippies."

"I know, I know. You're right, I just have to think a little harder and come up with something good."

"Uh, no you don't. Stop thinking so hard. It'll be easier."

"But he told us to think about it day and night…"

"Not if you give yourself an ulcer. Knowing you and your honor roll grades, it'll come to you."

There was silence for a moment as Katara mentally conceded that she was being stupid to stress over this so much. Mr. Iroh wasn't a fan of the traditional grading scale anyway, so chances were she'd end up with an A. She was more worried about disappointing the man. When she had reached into the hat for her phrase, he had looked at her like he was daring her to discover something, like he already had the answer he wanted in mind. But that wouldn't be like him, would it? He was all for discovery and self-expression, even if that meant singing his favorite songs loudly and gratingly while they were working. She had to say she preferred his gentler numbers.

"Hey Toph…" she began thoughtfully. "What does it mean to you? 'Sing me down,' I mean."

"It doesn't matter what I think it means. I'm not all that poetic anyway."

"In your own words, just make something up. I promise I won't take it, I just want to see what you think."

She hesitated. "It's pretty stupid…just the first thing that jumped into my mind."

"Tell me. Can't be any stupider than what _Jet _will come up with." Jet was a perfect example of someone who took the class as a blow-off.

"I thought you liked him."

"No, of course not. He's just…mildly attractive," she said, flustered.

"Sure…"

"Whatever, it could never work with a slacker like him. Now tell me what the words mean to you."

"Fine. Well…it's really random, but the first thing I thought of was a play on 'beat me down.' Why you'd ask someone to beat you I don't know. And I get images of dueling opera singers in my head, which isn't all that pleasant."

She had to laugh at that. Toph's cell phone went off, blaring some heavy metal song that Katara didn't recognize. She snapped it open.

"Yeah? They're at four. Um…I guess so."

She was talking about her tryouts for the soccer team, which Katara was coming to as well. She knew that it was kind of a far shot for a blind girl to try out for a sports team, but sports were practically Toph's life outside of school. She had a feeling that she wouldn't be too disappointed if they didn't let her on the team for medical reasons, as long as they admitted that she was good – uncannily good. Toph was no ordinary blind girl. Katara felt foolish, but she had often wondered if she was a little bit psychic. How else would she be able to know where all of the players were on a field, and how best to dodge them? How else could she score such perfect goals? When Sokka had asked her that in indignation after she beat him in her backyard (again), she had just shrugged and said that people were noisy.

"Wait…_what?" _

The shorter girl was slowly turning red. Katara rolled her eyes and smiled, well aware of what that meant.

"Well, I guess he can come if he wants…but if he distracts me by yelling or doing something stupid, I'll pummel him." She hung up and jammed the phone back into her pocket, face averted from Katara's.

"So…who was it?" Katara mimicked casual conversation, but the playful tone was easily heard.

"Just Aang. He's coming too," Toph answered dismissively.

"And…?"

Toph let out an indecipherable mumble.

"What was that?"

"So's Sokka," she said grudgingly.

"Aha…"

"Hey, don't 'aha' me. He's going to do something like trip me, and then you'll be deprived of an older brother. The world's better off without that bum, anyway." And yet she was having difficulty fighting off a pleased smile.

* * *

The wind had increased by the time the tryouts started. Katara, Aang and Sokka sat on the grass on the sidelines as the girls began what Katara could only assume was running to show off their endurance. A couple of the ones nearest to Toph seemed a bit nervous, almost afraid that they were going to knock her over if they got too close, but she put the doubts out of their minds by skillfully maneuvering around their tangling feet, empty eyes still directed straight ahead. Sokka was examining the grass.

"I mean, painting it white can't be all that healthy for it."

"Um…sure," said Aang, apparently not sure if he was making a joke or not.

"Sokka, why don't you watch the tryouts?" Katara was annoyed, given how happy Toph had been that he was coming.

"I'll watch when they actually start playing. Then Toph can kick some major – wait. Is _he _coaching?"

"Oh God…"

"What?" asked Aang, confused. "That guy?" The man in question was balding slightly, his gray hair and goatee sticking out at an odd angle. An odd but energetic smile engulfed his face.

"Oh, that's right," Katara began. "You haven't been in Mr. Dock's gym class yet. I really don't know why he teaches it; he's not all that active. Besides that he's…creepy."

"Creepy like, call the cops creepy?" Aang sounded very concerned, glancing at Toph.

"No! Like, split-personality creepy."

"…What?"

"Yeah, he's a riot," laughed Sokka. "Insists he's got brothers, Xu and Bushi, I think. You'd like one of them; enjoys cleaning rivers in his spare time. I forget which one. But they're all him anyway."

"Why do they let him teach?"

"Why do they let Toph try out for soccer? He's not that bad of a teacher, once you get past all that. Look, they're starting to play!"

There was a scrimmage going on, Toph taking one of the defensive positions, to her obvious annoyance.

"I hope they let her get to the ball," Katara said, now a bit worried. Maybe they would try to show her mercy, something that would not be forgiven, she knew.

"That's what I was about to say," Aang added. "She's just as good as any of them. Probably better."

"Mr. Dock's unusual…"

"Maybe he'll let her play?"

It interested Katara how much her thoughts and Aang's paralleled each other. Ever since they had started getting to know each other in middle school, they seemed to be on the same wavelength on a lot of important issues, and even just everyday events. Except for the whole yoga thing.

"What do you think, Sokka? Are they going let her play? Um…Sokka?"

Sokka was a bit distracted at the moment, craning his neck to see a group of girls standing at the fence.

"Look, it's Suki!"

Katara held back a groan. She had nothing against Suki; she was actually a very nice girl, and she admired her level of physical activity. They had met her at another of Aang's matches, where she was in the female division. She attended Kyoshi High, the all-girls school that was hosting the solo and ensemble competition. She was probably here to check out the competition for her own soccer team. But did she really have to show up _now, _when Sokka could be paying attention to _Toph? _At least Toph wouldn't know that Sokka wasn't –

"HEY, SUKI!"

This time she did groan as she actually saw Toph stiffen from halfway across the field. Suki waved and momentarily left her (now giggling) friends.

"Hey, Sokka! Your team prospects look pretty good this year. Especially Toph."

Aang caught Katara's eyes and shrugged sadly as other two started talking statistics. It was no use. Sokka was oblivious, and Toph wasn't standing as confidently as she was a moment ago. Mr. Dock shouted something about switching positions. At first Toph seemed to be dragging her feet, maybe upset that her moment had been marred, but then something in her expression changed and she seemed more determined than ever as she took up the offense.

"Whoa, look at her go," said Suki, sounding impressed.

"Yeah, she's really a…" Sokka trailed off as he realized just how well she was doing.

Toph was on fire, and was for the rest of tryouts. She scored by far the most goals during the scrimmage, and performed perfectly in the other segments. It was as if she was using a source of frustration that she didn't usually have to fuel her ability. As she slammed the ball into the goal perfectly once again, Katara had to laugh at Sokka's open mouth. Toph would be glad to hear about that, at least. When she was done she approached the group, radiant in her sweat and her smile.

"Tell me that I wasn't awesome."

"I'm sorry, I can't work up will to put you down after that," Sokka admitted.

Toph gave him a punch on the arm just for the heck of it, but Katara could see that she was pleased.

* * *

As the group minus Suki was walking to Aang's house for celebratory granola bars, Toph fell back a little, which to Katara was an obvious indicator that she wanted to talk. Falling back with her, she let out a gentle, "hmm?"

Toph's words were suddenly quiet, embarrassed and halting under the sound of the boys' laughter. "You think he really likes her?"

"I don't know. He has a crush. She's probably too good for him anyway." She attempted to make the words breezy and dismissive, even funny. Too bad she didn't quite know how to do that in the situation. The girls were quiet for a moment.

"Hey, you know what's funny?" Toph began, still a bit melancholy. "After she showed up, I was…well, you know. But then, like, suddenly words jumped into my head, and they were 'sing me down.' That has got to be the stupidest phrase in the world, but I still made the connection to 'beat me down' and that made it a bit better. I used it as a rhythm to play to, thinking of, well, beating stuff down. It was really annoying, but it helped. Probably because I wanted to beat down those freaking words by the end."

Katara laughed. "I can kind of see why it would help. Like imagining the face of someone you hate on the ball. But…the words themselves were probably helpful, making you think of beating someone…er…something."

Not that Katara knew that Toph had probably been thinking more along the lines of "someone." Or at least that someone's attentions to Sokka. Still, she was fairly sure that the phrase didn't have a connection to beating in _her_ mind_. _At least it had helped Toph.

Aang opened his front door, calling out a greeting to Gyatso while still half laughing at some bad pun Sokka had made. Once his eyes had actually focused on what was behind the door, however, he stopped laughing.

"Er…hi Zuko. What are you doing in my house…exactly?"

* * *

A/N: Plot twist, oh snap! D:

Review? It'd make my day, I swear.


	3. Teatime and Tauntings

A/N: Finally, it's up. I still haven't gotten all of those angsty oneshots out of my system, but I can certainly take a break. ;) This is ceratinly evolving past what I expected it to. As a side note: I feel that you should know that I love Azula. A lot.

Disclaimer: Don't own.

* * *

"_Er…hi Zuko. What are you doing in my house…exactly?"_

Katara's eyes snapped forward from where they had been lingering on Toph's face. Sure enough, Zuko stood behind the screen door, poised as if ready to leave and radiating displeasure. It was obvious from everything down to his posture that he was not happy being in the house of his rival, but he smirked carelessly at the question.

"Doesn't matter. I'm almost gone now, aren't I?"

One look at that carefully controlled, patronizing face made Katara's own face heat in anger.

"He has every right to know." She regretted choosing the words even as they were escaping her lips. There she went, sounding indignant and overly righteous. According to Toph, she had a bit of a problem with comebacks that didn't sound like they came from an enraged PTA mother.

It didn't make much of a difference either way, as Zuko chose to ignore her completely. He opened the screen door with a rapidity that caused Aang to stumble backwards to avoid being hit.

"Hey you can't just - " Sokka started, putting Katara on guard. They had no need for her brother's occasional rash behavior here, not now. He was cut off, however, by a polite voice from inside.

"Zuko Sozin."

Gyatso's countenance was all smiles as he emerged, but it was not difficult to miss the underlying firmness in those two words. This was not a pleasant acknowledgement of his presence.

"Stay for tea with my grandson and his friends?"

It just might have been a command.

* * *

They sat on the floor around the low, circular table in the living room. The china before them seemed cheery, like a doll's play set, in the light of the picture window. The room was sparsely furnished, light, airy – like Gyatso and Aang themselves.

Normally the four would have been enjoying their granola bars, or as much as they could enjoy the stuff. Now that the celebratory mood had been effectively killed, they sipped their tea quietly and stared at the intruder into their little party. Zuko didn't seem to care about the staring, but his posture was frustrated and his tea lay untouched. He had originally refused Gyatso's invitation, but the old man had made some vague reference to his "offer" that seemed to change his mind – albeit just barely.

Gyatso was outwardly unbothered by the thick tension in the air.

"Zuko," he broke the silence gently, "was here on an errand for his father." He took another sip. Silence reigned for a moment, but apparently he didn't see the need to add to the explanation.

Toph, sitting with her feet on the table and her head propped up with overstuffed pillows, was the next to speak.

"So what does Daddy want?" Biting and to the point.

Despite her frequent accusations that Toph was too rude, Katara could have applauded. That wasn't really surprising, but it made her wonder why her hatred for him felt so deep. It stemmed from his outright hostility towards Aang of course, but there were a few others who were put off by him. She didn't treat them any worse for it.

"I don't have any more time for tact. My _father_" – a pointed, cursory glance at Toph – "sent me here to get you to cancel your little _party." _He spat the last word out with such derision that there was no doubt left in any of their minds what he was referring to: the river rally.

_That_ was why Katara felt as she did: He was just Daddy's little boy, and she did not like Daddy.

"Fat chance!" Sokka was blazing with the confidence of adrenalin and imagined rivalry, not caring that it was Aang that Zuko really hated.

"Look," Zuko snapped, "there's nothing wrong with what my father wants to do. There's no law that says he can't buy and develop land. It's his job."

"But it'll destroy the river's ecosystem," Aang pleaded. "We petitioned him, and he didn't respond. Why does he need _this _land? Can't he just-"

"It's prime property! I'll get to the point; I don't want to be here longer than I have to. If you keep at this pointless…thing" – no gift for elegance, she noted – "then he has means to stop you." His voice grew lower, more controlled, and a smirk crept across his face. "Let's not have to resort to that."

The room rang with the silence that followed.

"Are…are you threatening us?" Sokka stuttered angrily.

"This has nothing to do with _you."_

"I think," Toph began, a lazy smirk crossing her features as she stared at the ceiling, "you should keep your battles _in_ the ring."

Zuko slammed his hand on the table.

"This isn't about Aang, this is about the damn river!"

"Exactly." Katara didn't even realize she had spoken for a moment; the jibe had come naturally for once.

"What?" For the first time, his narrowed eyes met and held someone's gaze beside Aang's.

"You know what I mean," she said as lightly as possible, meeting the stare. "Perhaps instead of worrying about doing whatever your dad says, you could develop a personality and actually prove that _you _care about something."

Silence, then Zuko shot to his feet.

"I am _not _only a-"

"Zuko." From Gyatso, it was a reproach without the insult, a reminder that an outburst would accomplish nothing. He could certainly do quite a bit with just a name.

Zuko met his eyes with disgust then turned sharply towards the door. Gyatso's expression remained unchanged.

"Did you want to finish your tea?"

Zuko paused, his tensed back still turned to them.

"I get enough of that from my uncle."

Then the door slammed and he was gone.

Toph sipped at her tea with surprising, slightly mocking grace.

"Congratulations, Katara. You just made a comeback. Now snappy, we'll work on."

"Very funny. By the way, I'm pretty sure there's no such thing as a karate ring."

"Whatever you say, Sugarqueen."

* * *

The chilly morning forced her to run her hands up and down her bare upper arms to warm them. Spring could be such a pesky season.

"I'm just worried, is all."

"Well you shouldn't be. Gyatso and Aang can take care of themselves."

"I'd like to think that, but what Zuko said yesterday…the Sozins are a powerful family. They've got connections; they could actually hurt them."

Once again, Katara was walking and worrying, this time with her brother. She couldn't help it; it was a natural reaction for her to obsess over a problem until a solution presented itself. Despite Sokka's constant claims that it was necessary to have a plan, he always seemed remarkably laid back in comparison to her. .

"Katara, listen. Things'll work out. What Gyatso is planning is perfectly legal-"

"The same goes for Mr. Sozin."

"Aw, look at you, still giving him the respect of a 'Mr.' Fight the power, call him by his real name!"

"You're ignoring my point."

Sokka sighed. "Look, Ozai has the legal right to buy and develop land, but Gyatso has the right to peaceful protest. If we raise enough opposition, then the plan can't possibly go through."

"I guess you're right…"

And yet she still wasn't sure. She hated being the one to worry all the time, but she felt like she had some sort of responsibility to. Sometimes no one else would. Aang had assured her that they would be alright, that Ozai couldn't possibly make them abandon Ghost River. She admired his courage, but couldn't help but wonder if it was really worth it. There had been a lot of construction and development in their town lately, most of it due to Ozai's business. That in itself wasn't considered a bad thing, but what had really begun to irk a few people was the reckless way that it was done. Places considered parts of the town history had been quickly demolished despite opposition, and due to fringe projects the wildlife was recorded to be disappearing at an alarming rate. Many of these situations could easily have been avoided at a slight cost to the company, but people who spoke out about the issue eventually went silent. Now they knew why.

They passed by the high school sign again. To her surprise, under "Damn hippies" someone else had carved, "What's your problem with hippies?" Not the snappiest comeback, in Toph's words. The thought of Toph and the sign combined sparked a memory.

"Hey…I've got kind of a weird question for you…"

* * *

Once again, she marveled at the way such different teenagers could all meld together to create such beautiful chords. She liked to imagine that they were even better today than they were yesterday, though in all honesty they were probably still the same. Her first hour was generally the same as before, except that now she had Sokka's answer to the notorious – in her mind, at least – riddle of "sing me down" to ponder.

Not that there was much to ponder there. Sokka had sheepishly told her that the first thing that had come to mind was – she had to refrain from laughing again – _seduction. _Or so he had made it sound before he hastily corrected her impression. Apparently it wasn't "seduction," it was "wooing." More appreciated by the ladies, she was sure. Although he did seem to differentiate between the two clearly enough – "sing me down" at least gave him emotional thoughts instead of sexual ones.

The bell rang and the students broke for the door. Katara experienced a sense of déjà vu as she was pulled aside yet again from the exit flow. Except this time it wasn't Mrs. Wu who wanted a word with her.

"So I hear my brother paid you a little visit yesterday."

Azula smirked down at her with her perfectly painted lips.

"Do you need anything?" Katara asked, impatient and on her guard. Whatever the "princess" was up to, it couldn't be good.

"No, nothing. I just wanted to remind you of what he said. Daddy's not very happy with the old man's decision," she cooed in mock pity while examining her strangely sharp nails. She was much better at the intimidation thing than her brother was, Katara had to admit. Something about the utter detachedness made her seem all the more dangerous.

Unable to come up with a proper response, she turned and stalked away, convincing herself that it didn't matter. Because who would stoop so low as to reply to _that_? She really did have to work on those comebacks, though.

"Oh, and…Katara, was it? You might find it amusing that when he got home, Zuko was absolutely _enraged _about all of this. He seemed to be under the impression that you particularly were calling him a puppet."

"I never said-" she turned around angrily only to meet the same unperturbed smirk.

"Oh, don't get me wrong, I don't mind. Zuzu is so _funny _when he's angry. I just thought you'd want to know."

As Katara left the room, the image that came to mind was of a pack of slowly circling, traitorous wolves.


	4. March 7th

A/N: Finally, an update. I was considering putting this thing on a permanent hiatus, but after revising a few points of the plot I've decided to push onwards. It's just too much fun.

Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar.

* * *

Katara released her hair from its braid, letting the waves fall messily about her pajamas. She jumped onto her bed with a small bounce on her knees before sprawling over the covers, reaching for a pencil and small notebook from her nightstand. She figured now would be a good a time as ever to really think about the message of "sing me down." Even though Toph's advice of just letting the answer flow to her seemed like a good idea, it just wasn't working for her. Katara wasn't the type to rely on abstract thought. She liked to know things rather than imagine them whenever possible.

She flipped through the pages, scratching down bits and pieces of nothing for about ten minutes before her mind began to drift. She had learned some interesting things today, after all.

* * *

"That…that conniving little…!"

Katara had slid into her seat at the lunch table next to On Ji, pulling a ham sandwich out of her paper bag. It was lucky that she and Sokka didn't have lunch with Aang, or her brother would never be able to devour the overly stuffed meat-on-meat sandwiches that he packed for himself every day. He had been sitting on the other end of the long table with some of his guy friends, entertaining himself with whatever boys with the maturity of six year olds did for fun.

On Ji raised an eyebrow, passing her a licorice stick.

"Well, you're certainly spirited today…"

Katara bit down on the candy, using the opportunity to regain control of her temper.

Sokka sauntered over, suddenly very interested in what his little sister had to say.

"Ooh, _conniving._ Duck and cover girls, she's pulling out the big guns. Who's conniving?"

She swallowed quickly, coughing a little.

"Azula Sozin! You should have seen her after choir today. She threatened me!"

"Huh. Fancy that. A Sozin threatening us. Déjà vu…"

"No. Well, yes. She was like Zuko. But _better!_"

"Well, yeah," On Ji had cut in, blinking at her incredulously. "Of course she was."

When the siblings just looked at her blankly, she shook her head at them.

"Jeez, are you guys just totally oblivious? Everyone who keeps up with gossip knows about the Sozin family rivalry. She's always one-upping him in everything. Rumor has it their dad's gonna leave the company to Azula, even though Zuko's older…"

There was a brief silence.

"Oh…"

Well, there wasn't much else to say to that. Sokka had sniggered a little.

* * *

It wasn't really all that surprising to her that she hadn't known. Even if the Sozins were a family that attracted a lot of attention, On Ji was probably overestimating the amount of people who knew about Zuko's personal problems, since the brunette was the type to keep up with every little tidbit of defaming information.

Katara's reverie was interrupted by her phone's musical ring. She rolled over and grabbed it, fully aware of how little she had gotten done on her assignment.

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's Aang. Just called to see what's up." His voice was carefully controlled.

"…Okay. I'm just trying to do an assignment for my Music class." She waited a few seconds for the real reason he had called.

"That's…cool. Listen, I was just…well, Sokka told me about Azula, and I wanted to apologize."

"Why would you need to apologize about that?"

"Um…well, it's kind of my fault. Mine and Grandpa's, I guess." His honest voice was suddenly anxious. "We got you wrapped up in our argument and then you were threatened. I just wanted to say-"

"No, no, it wasn't that bad! It's not like she threatened my life or anything. She basically said the same things Zuko did except…" she trailed off, deciding that given Aang's worried tone, "scarier" would be a bad word choice.

"I've been thinking about that time, too. Even something like that…well, it's not something you need to get involved in."

They were silent for a moment.

"Aang, I realize you're trying to protect me, but what _you_ might not realize is that I want to be able to help."

"I know that! I just…it's not really your fight."

"But it _can_ be." She laughed lightly. "You're expecting the rest of us to just sit by and let it _not _be our fight? The Sozins need to be stopped. That's important to you, right?"

For a moment the only sound was the slight rush of air from the speaker.

"The river – and everything else endangered by this – is _very_ important to me. But…so are you guys."

He said it in such a sweet voice that she couldn't help but smile.

"Listen, there's nothing to worry about. You're not going to be able to stop us, and what's a protest of two people going to accomplish? You need people to support you. It'd be horrible if a bunch of strangers joined your rally and your friends didn't."

"Yeah…well, I guess you're right."

It wasn't hard to hear the happy tinge to his voice hidden behind the reluctance. They talked for a while before Katara insisted that she had to go to bed.

It was only as she flipped off her lamp and pulled up her covers did she realize the full meaning of what Aang had told her. He was worried about them. That meant that there had to be something to fear.

She rolled over onto her side and tried to keep her eyes shut. Great. This could be a long night.

* * *

Katara awoke a good half hour before her alarm rang the next morning, despite having gotten a limited amount of sleep. She got the distinct impression that something was wrong. Something hidden within layers of memory warned her that today wasn't going to be an ordinary day. What was the date…?

Oh. March seventh.

She sprang out of bed and hurried downstairs, making too much noise as she banged things together searching for a pan and the ingredients she wanted. Crap, where was the bacon? She could have sworn that they had just gotten some, a thick, juicy, expensive brand. Sokka's favorite. She had requested it specifically for today. How could she have forgotten? She had marked it on her calendar and everything.

A heavy bag full of oranges fell from the refrigerator, landing on her toe. She hopped madly for a few seconds, sucking air through her teeth as she restrained any noise that could wake –

"What's all this?" a craggy voice demanded sleepily.

"Ack, sorry I woke you, Gran Gran. I was just…" she lowered her voice even further, "making breakfast for Sokka."

Her grandmother's annoyed expression softened as she nodded, coming forward to show Katara where the bacon was hidden in the back of the refrigerator from her impatient brother.

"You're lucky that boy could sleep through Ragnarök."

They worked together, Kanna frying the bacon while Katara mixed pancake batter, pouring an obscene amount of chocolate chips into the concoction. Her stomach already felt sick, due to both her own forgetfulness and the date itself. March the seventh had not been a happy day for her brother.

Soon the smell of frying meat drew Sokka downstairs, clumsily rubbing at his eyes and dragging his bare feet along the linoleum. He flopped down at the table, immediately recommencing his sleep until the food was ready.

She watched him out of the corner of her eye. He seemed alright; maybe today wouldn't be as bad as she had thought. It had been two full years, after all. Then again, it was hard to tell in the early morning when her brother's reactions were basically all the same.

They served his food and he began eating heartily enough. She thought he moved a little bit more slowly than usual, but that could have just been her imagination.

Two years to the day since Yue died.

She had been his middle school crush, a dancer, the little girl he was always trying to impress. Katara had done her sisterly duties and teased him every chance she got, but that didn't stop him. He was more likely to announce a "You bet!" (or, when Gran Gran wasn't around, "Hell yeah!") to a round of "Sokka and Yue sitting in a tree" than a "shut up."

When he got into high school, he finally got her attention. She remembered thinking that his story was awfully romantic – he had asked her to a performance of _The Nutcracker, _much to everyone's surprise. No one suspected he'd be able to sit through it, even for a girl he liked who was fascinated by ballet. Somehow he managed, and came back with his head in the clouds and a new girlfriend.

A lot of boys had been after the beautiful girl, named for the moon due to some odd gene or defect that led her to be born with hair as white as snow. Katara could still remember Hahn's face when he realized that Yue had chosen Sokka over him. Even Sokka had seemed to be in a state of shock for awhile.

Then came the accident.

Katara hadn't been home most of the day, but she had come home to the devastating news that Yue had been involved in a hit-and-run collision. They visited her in the hospital, but only Sokka was allowed in with her family.

To this day, Katara didn't know what words passed between the two of them in that last hour, but she liked to imagine they had been uplifting. Sokka accepted her death in time, and the world went on. It seemed just like Yue to tell him to live his life to the fullest, or some other sentimental message for a boy she wished she really had had time to get to know.

It was such an odd, somehow poetic thing, she realized. They had barely started dating when it had happened. Who knew what their relationship could have become if it hadn't been cut so short?

Sokka caught her looking at him and gave her a quirky, reassuring smile.

"Thanks, sis. Gran Gran. Seriously."

She smiled.

Suddenly they heard the bang of the front door hitting the wall as someone swung it open without bothering with such a troublesome task as knocking.

"Yo!" Toph's cheerful voice preceded her into the kitchen.

"What are you doing here?" Katara called, surprised. "Any other day, and you would have woken Gran Gran."

"What, not happy to see me? 'Sides, I knew she'd be awake today." She sauntered into the kitchen, a nervous looking Aang in tow. She tilted her head to one side, listening for a moment before walking in Sokka's direction, putting her palms on the table and leaning forward towards his face.

"C'mon. We're going on vacation."

"…What?"

"You heard me. Let's head to the arcade. The mall. The skate park. The movies. Whatever. Let's just _go._"

Katara raised an eyebrow at Aang, who shrugged, then glanced awkwardly at Gran Gran, who was looking on impassively. Toph was obviously in one of her get-up-and-go moods, a sort of sweet attempt to make the somber day a little more cheerful in her own, very Toph-like way. But to suggest cutting school in front of their grandmother…

"Well, what are you waiting for? We've got the whole world! Katara can come too, if she doesn't get fussy about perfect attendance or whatever."

"Toph, I don't think this is an appropriate way to-"

"Please?" Sokka asked, throwing her off her guard.

Katara's eyes jumped to her brother, whose own gaze was glued on his grandmother. Of course, the idea seemed utterly ridiculous to her, but for him, the promise of an authority defying adventure…

She rounded on Aang.

"You're in on this too?"

"No! Well, kind of. Yes. Look, she dragged me into it…and it sounded exciting, you know?"

"Of course it did."

"Oh come on, don't make me feel guilty! It's for Sokka's sake."

"Guys, Gran Gran's not going to-"

"Just this once?" Sokka whined.

Impossibly, their grandmother's impassive face melted into another slight smile.

"If you get all of your work done…I suppose it won't hurt. Just this once."

Katara stared at Kanna in pure shock, unable to believe what she was hearing as Sokka whooped.

"But Gran Gran -"

"Your attendance is very good, thanks in part to me. I think every now and then a personal day wouldn't do much harm. Good for the health. I used to be quite the adventurer in my youth as well. But I must insist on you taking someone responsible along."

"Hey…" Aang muttered resentfully.

Sokka, when he was finished celebrating his good luck, turned his pleading eyes on Katara.

"C'mon, it'll be fun."

Toph snorted.

"Leave it. Sugarqueen over here's not gonna mar her record."

"Of course I'm not. It's a very irresponsible thing to do."

"More irresponsible than abandoning your brother?"

"That's not how it is and you know it! I just…I'm going to school."

"Yup. 'Course you are."

"Fine."

"Fine."

Fifteen minutes later, Toph, Aang, and Sokka were marching out the door, a grumbling Katara in tow.


End file.
